My spine goes rigid. “Dar?—”
“We talked about this.”
We did. Last month. And his words still haunt me.
You need stability. A partner who anchors you. A wife.
Why is it that the people who got lucky in love always preach relationships like they’re the easiest thing in the world? He and Ana had to have been lovers in another life. I think she was in his house for a week, eight months pregnant withmy child, and he was already fucking her.
I rub a hand over my jaw. “I’m figuring it out.”
Darragh cinches his brows. “I know you’re tighter with Trace and the Quinlans these days. There must be a deal to strike, an alliance that Griffin wants.” He taps a finger against his knee. “Maybe someone has a daughter?—”
Daughter? Yeah, I want my boss’s daughter.
“Trace offered to set me up with a sister of one of his guards.” And I’m fucking considering it. It may be the only way I get Scarlett off my mind.
Darragh nods. “Let’s set a goal. Go on two dates this month.”
Date… Scarlett and her dark hair, her laugh, and her wicked temptation about not wearing panties on a date are all I want. It’s one thing to go into an arrangement with a clear head. I’m so fucking fixated on Scarlett, I might actually blurt her name during sex.
God, my dick just shriveled a little, imagining sleeping with someone else.
I straighten. “I promise, by the end of the semester, I’ll have someone.”
His brows arch into his forehead. I want to shoot myself for making a promise I know I won’t keep.
But he somehow believes me. He must want it so badly, he’s ignoring the warning bells going off in his head like sirens. There’s even a hint that he’s pleased, relieved in a way I haven’t seen from him since before I fucked things up in Seattle.
“Good,” he says quietly. “That’s…good.”
I want to bring up regular visitation with J.P. outside their home. About being more involved. But when I open my mouth, the alarm on my phone chimes.
Shit.
I sling my bag over my shoulder. “I’ve got class.”
And I have to propose creating a team to assist me when treating Quinlan Empire medical emergencies.
Darragh stands with me, following me to the door. But he stops me before I can leave. His gaze softens in a way that steals my breath. “I’m proud of you.”
That hits harder than it should. A second chance I still don’t believe I deserve. Especially when I look at Scarlett,I’m reminded how easily I can be ruined.
My brother watches me for another beat, searching, maybe sensing the storm under my skin. But he doesn’t ask me any more questions. He turns and heads for the stairwell, and I jog in the opposite direction, adrenalin tightening my chest.
The hallway leading to my classroom stretches long and endlessly because I know I’ll see her waiting for me.
No panties.
That is on a loop in my head, and I can’t fucking stop it.
I force my breathing to steady as I enter the classroom. The students’ conversations end when I step to the podium and quickly scan my opening monologue to discuss an important case study. I’m about to relax and dig in, until I glance in the one direction I shouldn’t, and my gaze collides with Scarlett’s.
Christ, she’s the only woman I want.
Chapter 23
Scarlett